


Pawn

by porcelainepeony



Category: Kuroko no Basuke | Kuroko's Basketball
Genre: Ficlet, M/M, One Shot
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-06-08
Updated: 2015-06-08
Packaged: 2018-04-03 12:01:43
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,236
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4100224
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/porcelainepeony/pseuds/porcelainepeony
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Akashi’s voice is song, melodious and downright obnoxious. "Do you know of Faust?"</p><p>You look away from the words that your gaze is carefully consuming—if Akashi is going to ignore you, then you will do the same, right?—and you frown. "Goethe’s novel or the legend?" Your quick reply is meant to let your underclassman know that, despite preferring light novels, you are actually smarter than Akashi probably believes. Plus, you are taking a world literature class and had to read the actual novel.</p><p>If the question is a trap, though, you are caught instantly. <i>Never show interest in anything Akashi says</i>, you reprimand yourself and wish you could take back the answer and the confident smile that had followed.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Pawn

Notes: First time writing for this fandom. I was coaxed into writing for this pair, and now I am obsessed with them. Also, hi, if any of you have Twitter and want to talk to me about this pair, PLEASE COME TALK TO ME. I AM DYING. UGH THIS STUPID PAIR.

xxx

The room in which you stand is cold and dark, and had it belonged to anyone else, you would not be standing there so uncomfortably in the first place. But Akashi had asked--no, it wasn't a request; it was a command, an order, a simple suggestion that, if not followed, would have meant consequences. And though you do not really care to follow through with every one of Akashi's whims, there had been a sparkling beam of _something_ inside of Akashi's eyes that reached out and grabbed you by your very soul. So you complied and went out of your way to walk to Akashi’s home, the silence between the both of you welcomed because, honestly, you had nothing to say to Akashi, and you hate the way he says your first name, so informal and familiar and _intimate_.

"Thank you, Chihiro."

But, now, you are standing in the middle of the room, staring at the back of Akashi's head as the first-year captain plays a single-player game of shogi. For as long as you have been in the room, Akashi's attention--so meticulous and precise--has been on nothing but the board game. Briefly, you wonder if Akashi remembers you are here, but you knew better than to question Akashi's awareness. Akashi knows you are in the room, but he won’t speak to you until his game is finished. And you, as much as he hate to stand around and wait for the bratty underclassman to finish some game that could take hours to complete, accept your role for the time being. 

_But if you don’t finish soon, I’m going to give that table a hard shove._

It does not take long for Akashi's voice to slice the silence. Once the thick blanket of discomfort is severed, you want nothing more than to return to the safety the quiet had provided only seconds before.

Akashi’s voice is song, melodious and downright obnoxious. "Do you know of Faust?"

You look away from the words that your gaze is carefully consuming—if Akashi is going to ignore you, then you will do the same, right?—and you frown. "Goethe’s novel or the legend?" Your quick reply is meant to let your underclassman know that, despite preferring light novels, you are actually smarter than Akashi probably believes. Plus, you are taking a world literature class and had to read the actual novel.

If the question is a trap, though, you are caught instantly. _Never show interest in anything Akashi says_ , you reprimand yourself and wish you could take back the answer and the confident smile that had followed.

Akashi, too, wears a smile. It is an eerie smile, one that you have seen only when particular subjects--mainly Akashi's old teammates--are brought up. It is a satisfied smile, but not a happy one; pleased, but laced with threat. And when he turns around and meets his gaze to yours, your breath is caught.

You hear yourself speak before you are able to stop yourself. "Why do you ask?"

_Stupid move._

"What do you think about Faust?" It seems Akashi is bent on giving you more questions.

_It’s always questions._

By this point, you swear the entire conversation is some ploy to get you to sign away your life to Akashi himself, but you have no escape. Not only are you not one to run away, but you are also not going to let Akashi scare you. After all, you have too much pride to let a know-it-all brat get the best of you. 

And, quite frankly, you do not _want_ to run. "If you're referring to Faust’s choice to make a deal with the devil to obtain things he couldn't otherwise obtain because he was bored—” You feel nothing, not even pity, for people who can’t find happiness in simple things. What was wrong with enjoying the scenery once in a while? “I would say he is an idiot."

Bingo. There is a fire that lights Akashi's gaze, and it sends sparks down your spine until you feel your insides crisp. 

"An idiot? How so?"

 _Fuck._ You like to make things complicated, don't you? The room feels much warmer now, and Akashi actually seems interested. "If you can’t enjoy what you have, you’re bound to be unhappy your entire life.” A pause. You consider ending the conversation there, turning around, and leaving, but you have a point to make. It was rare for Akashi to show such genuine interest, and you want to push his buttons. So you add that things lose meaning if they’re easily obtained, and you watch and wait for Akashi to react or to grow tired with your easy approach to the world.

The eerie smile lingers. Akashi remains quiet for a brief moment. Then, "Are you saying, if proposed with the chance to acquire anything in the world, you wouldn't take it?"

You snort and shove your book into your bag, cross your arms, and answer with a curt no.

The silence engulfs you both, but Akashi is not phased; meanwhile, you tell yourself to stop thinking because you swear Akashi can hear your thoughts in that silence, and you don’t want him to know that you find their conversation interesting and Akashi’s eyes mesmerizing.

Akashi speaks, his command on words both petrifying and exciting. "Eternal life?"

You would laugh, but you know Akashi is serious. So you tell him there is no point to life without death. "Life loses value if there's no gamble." _But can a brat like you truly understand?_

"Knowledge?" Akashi questions not a second after, and you begin to wonder if your captain will never find an end to his sudden curiosity about you.

"Knowing everything would be rather dull." _And I frankly don’t care._

"Power?"

You snort again and stare Akashi right in the eyes. "You have all the power you give yourself."

Akashi is standing in front of you now, too close for your liking. But your conversation, the curiosity in Akashi's gaze, the way his lips move with every syllable uttered mesmerized you to the point of ignoring the invasion of your personal space. Yet you are still ready, you tell yourself, to beat Akashi at whatever game he wants to play. 

_But if that statement were true, why do I give you so much power over me?_

When Akashi speaks again, you freeze. Not because the words are cold. No, they are anything but cold. "Then, what about--"

Hands. Delicate, yet resolute hands move up and push past your last defenses, cup your cheeks and refuse to let you breathe. 

"Love?"

You almost do not hear the word, but it is warm against your lips, tantalizing and shy all at once, and you have to remind yourself not to lean forward, lest you want to seal your fate. But the prospect is alluring, for shutting up Akashi would make you oh so happy, never mind watching him unravel slowly in your hands, in your arms, beneath your weight.

But, instead, your mouth moves to speak, thoughts and voice stumbling out before you have a chance to rethink what you are about to say. "Love is fickle, isn't it? People spend hours trying to impress someone, trying to become important enough not to be left aside or forgotten, and all for a few nights under the covers and maybe some happy memories that fade as time continues."

_Pathetic._

There is something akin to amusement in Akashi's stare, but you cannot pinpoint the reason. You figure it has something to do with your reply being exactly what Akashi wants to hear, but it can just as easily be the hurt in your eyes, a pain that Akashi could probably see even if he were standing miles away. That distance, however, diminishes entirely. Eyes fall shut. Your hands awkwardly come to rest on Akashi's lower back, while Akashi's remained ever so poised on your cheeks. Lips brush softly, and, in that moment when your breath is stolen, you realize that you had lost whatever game you are playing the second you answered Akashi’s first question. The hidden invitation in Akashi's words, the challenge in his gleaming eyes--you had taken them, sought them out. You were baited by the devil in person, caught in a kiss you desperately didn't want, but also fiercely needed more than you realized. It is then that you understand your folly—your own confession you so blatantly declared.

You have never before ventured to say that you are trying to impress Akashi. Frankly, you do not care-- _keep telling yourself that_ \--if Akashi sees you as an important figure or not. But you also know that you do, in fact, try hard to catch Akashi's eye. Having been approached by Akashi despite feeling as if you were invisible had been the first step into breaking your nonchalant attitude. You did not think you were a great player; you did not care. But Akashi kept comparing you--still compares you--to that invisible sixth player from his old team, so you waste your time and _try_. You try to become everything Akashi wants. You try to recapture Akashi's attention day in and day out. You try to become worth something even though Akashi is worth nothing to you. You try to be better than the phantom sixth man so that Akashi can stop saying his name and referring back to him because--

Akashi's lips are softer than what you ever imagine them being, and they are not as forceful either. Not like Akashi's eyes that demand and break and manipulate. Akashi's hands, too, are delicate, the movements planned. They move from your face and into your hair, down your back, up your arm, across your chest. You release a small gasp into the kiss, your stomach churning as you feel Akashi smile--though it isn’t a smile and you know better than to call it a smile--into the kiss. 

\--because you want your name to roll off his lips instead.

Before you have enough sense to stop whatever Akashi and you are doing, the kiss ends, and you are cold once again. Akashi says nothing, only saunters to the shogi board on the desk at the end of the room and looks down at it as if considering his next move.

But you know how to play. You are not as experienced at mind games as Akashi is, but you know games well enough. "What about you? Would you trade your soul to acquire anything in the world?" You chuckle. "No, let me guess--you already have everything you want." A fact you need no proof to confirm. _Maybe you aren’t Faust. You're the devil, and you're too confident that you can ruin even God's plans._

A small noise echoes in the room, but you aren’t sure if it is an amused laugh or a scoff. Regardless, it makes you shiver. 

"Isn't it as you say?"

How Akashi's voice demands so much attention is beyond you, but when he speaks, you cannot look away, no matter how much you scream at yourself to do just that. 

"Life wouldn't mean anything without death's gamble. The beauty of knowledge is in pursuing it. Similarly, being given power means nothing unless you take it. And--"

You don’t know when you approach Akashi, when Akashi circles you and backs you against a wall, when Akashi has yet again closed the distance between the two of you enough so that you can feel the warmth of your teammate's body, but he is there, within reach, and your heart is _pounding_. 

"And," you whisper.

Silence. Gazes lock. You suddenly wish you had forfeited because--

"And love is boring."

\--because there is no backing out.

"It's only boring with one player."

Not when you refuse to back down. Not when Akashi's lips turn upwards. Not when you want to feel your stupid underclassman's lips against yours once more. 

_I'm a sadist. I must be._

But you don't care, for Akashi takes your bait for once, and you can see only yourself in the reflection of Akashi's eyes and, really, that is all that matters.

"There _is_ one thing I'd ask for," Akashi says, words low, breath teasing your lips. 

You are curious, but you remain silent, eyes transfixed on the dancing shades of red and orange in Akashi's irises, like a burning fire to your coal and ash.

Without another word, Akashi cups your cheeks and presses his lips to yours. The mind games will never stop, but you begin to understand why Faust would want to obtain almost anything in the world, for you would trade it all--your life and beliefs and sense of self--if only to unravel Akashi the way he has undone you. However, you are not the player. You are merely a pawn, and you will be tossed aside when Akashi finds a new piece to move. A better piece. A more useful piece.

You cannot stand the thought. But, at the very least, you will ruin his game. 

**Author's Note:**

> _But probably not before he ruins mine._


End file.
